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Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156

The 6th International Conference Edu World 2014 “Education Facing Contemporary World
Issues”, 7th - 9th November 2014

Class Management as Methodology of General Didactics / General

Theory of Instruction
Gabriela Cristea*
”Spiru Haret” University of Bucharest, Romania

Abstract

Our study stresses the fact that Class Management asserts as a Methodology of General Didactics / General Theory of
Instruction. Class Management has as specific study object: 1) the concrete context of the class which includes the time and
space of frontal instruction; 2) methodology as specific research type: a) intradisciplinary – as applicative field of some
pedagogic sciences (theory of instruction, psychology of education, sociology of education); b) interdisciplinary, at the level of
the reporta between pedagogy – psychology; economy; polytology, which generated the appearance of new pedagogic sciences
(Management of education, Management of school organization, Class Management).

© 2015Published
© 2015 The Authors. Published
by Elsevier by Elsevier
Ltd. This Ltd.
is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of The Association “Education for tomorrow” / [Asociatia “Educatie pentru maine”].
Peer-review under responsibility of The Association “Education for tomorrow” / [Asociatia “Educatie pentru maine”].
Keywords: Type your keywords here, separated by semicolons ;

Paper rationale

Class management is a new pedagogic / education science, affirmed also in Romania after 1990. Its status is
academically confirmed by the inclusion as obligatory discipline in the initial and continuous training programs of
the didactic personnel. This formal legitimation demands also an epistemological argumentation, placed under the
sign of two provocations: I) the status of Class Management in the pedagogic / education sciences; II) the evolution

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: gabi_cristea2007@yahoo.com

1877-0428 © 2015 Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of The Association “Education for tomorrow” / [Asociatia “Educatie pentru maine”].
doi:10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.02.098
 Gabriela Cristea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156 151

line of Class Management as a new pedagogic / education science.

I) A concrete answer at the first epistemological provocation imposes the fulfillment of two important
objectives: 1) the clarification of this new pedagogic science’s status in the opened system of the educational
sciences; 2) the underlining of its status reported to the fundamental pedagogic sciences, especially with general
didactics / general theory of instruction / theory and methodology of instruction.
II) A second answer referring to the understanding of the evolution of Class Management as a new
pedagogical science, imposes the fulfillment of two important objectives: 1) the underlining of the main evolution
directions (Class Management; Management of the didactic activity / lesson); 2) the correlation and integration of
the two evolution directions in an Ideal pedagogic model of Class Management.

I) Class management, as a new pedagogic science

I) Class management, as a new pedagogic science, defines „a field of research in the sciences of education
which studies both the theoretic perspectives of approaching pupils class, and its practical structures with the
purpose of facilitating the teachers’ intervention in concrete educational situations (Romiţă B.Iucu, 2006 apud
Ciprian Ciobanu, in Constantin Cucoş, coord., 2008, p.505, subl.ns.)
1) The specific study object to the pedagogic science entitled Class management is represented by „a
theoretical-applicative field”, thus having a pronounced methodological character. We consider the fact that the
methodology or the technology in general constitutes an applied theory, in a concrete context. In our case we are
dealing with a theory of instruction applied at the class microstructural level.
The school class as „learning micro-community”, is approached by this new science of education in a
double perspective: a) of the concrete context represented by the class, especially as pedagogic space and time
necessary for frontal instruction; b) of the specific didactic activity organized and accomplished in the school class –
we consider the lesson; in this sense we can speak about „Management of lesson” (Gabriela Cristea, 2003a, 2008).
2) The research methodology specific to Class management, corresponds to its specific study object. In our
opinion, it can consecrate the theoretical-applicative status of Class management as Methodology of general
didactics / general theory of instruction. Starting from this reality, the research methodology, which sustains the
epistemological status of Class management, is a intradisciplinary order one. We consider the fact that Class
management is / or should be constructed and developed intradisciplinary as applicative field, profiled, specialized,
of pedagogic theories already affirmed from epistemological and social perspective:
a) General didactic / General theory of instruction / Theory and methodology of instruction; at this level
we may speak about a management of the didactic activity, in general, and especially about a lesson management;
b) Psychology of education and Sociology of education; at this level, we may speak about a management of
the psychological and social context of school class, of class pedagogic space and time, of class psychosocial
climate etc.
The main research methodology, which allows the intradisciplinary assertion and development is one of
interdisciplinary order. The interdisciplinary research methodology is the construction base of every pedagogic /
education sciences which appeal to the managerial approach of education, in general (Management of education),
of school as organization (Management of school organization), especially of class (Class management) etc. – see
Sorin Cristea, 2000.
From this perspective, the Class management must be reported to the Management of school organization
and to the Management of education. It is the logic of the correct solving of the reports between the plan general –
particular – concrete of the efficient pedagogic activity, which should also be reflected at the level of university
curricula for the initial and continuous training of didactic personnel, from all the disciplines and school levels.
The managerial approach of education, school, class, lesson etc. is sustained interdisiciplinary at the level
of the existing levels, cultivated, perfected between pedagogy and economy. The managerial approach implies the
full valorizing of resources (in our case of the pedagogic resources) at level: a) global (systemic), optimal (reported
to the existing concrete conditions); c) strategic (from the perspective of the classes evolutions, on medium and long
term); d) innovative (following the permanent perfection of the didactic activity in the class opened context).
3) The principles that the class management must promote are imposed by the specific research object and
especially by the specific research methodology intra and interdisciplinary. They are principles which fixate the
152 Gabriela Cristea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156

approach model of class as specific context of accomplishing the didactic activity at global level (systemic),
optimal, strategic and innovative.
In the conditions of promoting and perfecting Class management as Methodology of general didactics /
General theory of instruction, we can establish the necessity of respecting two categories of principles:
1) General principles of class management:
a) The principle of the efficiency of the activities accomplished in the class context by maximally valorizing
the existing pedagogic resources (informational, human, didactic-material, financial / budgetary etc.).
b) The principle of homogenizing the activities accomplished in the class context at the level of the reports
between the projected objectives – existing resources – obtained results, continuously and at different intervals of
time evaluated.
2) Specific principles for class management:
a) The principle of global, systemic approaching, of the activities accomplished in class context (in
function of: all the existing resources in the frontal instruction; of all the components of projection / objectives –
contents – methods – evaluation; of all the three actions subordinated to the instruction activity: teaching-learning-
evaluation).
b) The principle of the optimal approach of the activities accomplished in the class context (in accordance
with the concrete existing resources and conditions).
c) The principle of the strategic approach of the activities accomplished in the class context (in the
perspective of the general and specific objectives, valuable on medium and long term).
d) The principle of the innovative approach of the activities accomplished in the class context (in the
perspective of the permanent improvement of the obtained results, adaptable to new situations, demands,
opportunities, provokes etc.).

II) The evolution of class management

At the level of pedagogic theory and practice

II) The evolution of class management, at the level of theory and pedagogic / educational, didactic
practice etc., with a pronounced methodological character, is oriented towards two main directions: 1) The
management of class context; 2) The management of didactic activity / lesson.
1) Tof class context constitutes that dimension which regards the global, optimal, strategic, innovative
approach of the numerous variables which intervene at level of: a) teacher’s educational stiles; b) pedagogic space
and time; c) psychosocial climate; d) situations of educational crisis (see Ciprian Ciobanu, in Constantin Cucoş,
coord., 2008, pp.505-524). Thus The management of class context, evolves, it develops on an affective side as: A)
Management of the teacher’s educational stiles; B) Management of pedagogic space and time; C) Management of
the psychosocial climate; D) Management of educational crisis solving.
A) Management of the teacher’s educational stiles appeals to the consecrated classification of the
leadership stiles (after K.Lewin): a) authority style: absolute control, immediate decisions, with guiding character;
b) permissive style: lack of systematic control, delayed decisions, compensated or replaced by personal initiatives,
with a purpose of self-regulation; c) democratic style: internal evaluation, permanent, with formative purpose:
optimal decisions, with strategic purpose of regulation – self-regulation of activity (of education, instruction,
orientation and professional counseling etc.).
The class management valorizes these leadership styles, interpreted also as educational or didactic styles.
Moreover, it develops them at the level of “contingency models”, reported to the extended context (didactic,
normative, psychological, psychosocial, sociologic, ergonomic, material etc.) of class. In this perspective, we may
identify two categories of stylistic models with value of teacher’s managerial styles (of specialty, Methodist /
coordinator of methodic commissions, manager, school inspector – school inspectorate, ministry of education):
1) Stylistic models –teacher’s managerial styles, who valorizes the consecrated typology or “trilogy”:
a) authority model (applied in an absolute or functional manner, when the context imposes such decisions,
with tactical character, but not definitive);
b) the liberal / permissive model (applied unconditionally, ideologically / following the teacher’s
 Gabriela Cristea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156 153

prejudices; in functional sense, when the context allows the postponing of decisions, replaced by self-regulatory
solutions / initiatives;
c) the democratic model which combines the authority decisions (determined by the education /
instruction’s general functions, by the general and specific objectives, by the basic contents – which must be taught,
by the normativity which must be respected at the level of organization of class context and of accomplishing the
reference activities) with permissive decisions (in choosing the didactic methods, evaluation techniques etc.).
2) Stylistic models – teacher’s managerial styles conditioned by the weight accorded to the tasks to be
fulfilled or the relations with the class collective and with the didactic collective:
a) the managerial model oriented towards tasks (concrete objectives) of activity; it is a model mainly
technological, which places the accent on fulfilling the projected tasks, „ without considering the ensemble of the
factors implicated in their accomplishing”;
b) the model oriented towards human relations which places the accent on valorizing the existing human
resources at different reports (teacher – pupils, teacher, teacher-pupil; pupil-pupil, pupil-other pupils).
3) Stylistic models – teacher’s managerial styles who promote a certain type of manager-teacher:
a) the model of manager-teacher „delegator” – the teacher gives special tasks to the pupils
b) the model of the participative manager-teacher – the teacher implicates actively, intellectually and
affectively-motivationally in accomplishing specific and concrete class objectives (operational);
c) the model of the persuasive teacher-manager – the teacher intervenes as a efficient coordinator, who
promotes a democratic style, by solutions which stimulate the pupils’ internal motivation;
d) the model of the directive, authority manager-teacher – the teacher guides all the actions in the
activities; it is a possible model, between certain limits, only in the case „of the pupils who does not have
motivation nor the necessary abilities to study”.
4) Stylistic models – teacher’s managerial styles which are conditioned by the „manner in which decisions
ate taken in managerial context:
a) authority stylistic model, variant 1– „the teacher-manager solves problems using only the information he
has”:
b) authority stylistic model, variant 2– „the teacher-manager tries to obtain additional information from the
pupils before taking the decisions”;
c) the consultative stylistic model, variant 1 – „the teacher-manager discusses the problems with each pupil
before taking a decision”;
d) the consultative stylistic model, variant 2 – the teacher-manager discusses the problem with the entire
class before taking an optimal decision;
e) the stylistic model based on „group decision” – the teacher-manager acts as a facilitator, the decision for
solving the problematic situation, being taken in group (class) – ibidem, pp.506-508).
B) Management of pedagogic space and time aims especially the global, optimal strategic valorizing of
these didactic-material resources specific for class, necessary at the level of any didactic activity (lesson etc.).
The management of class pedagogic space aims the valorizing of the didactic-material resources (learning
means, didactic materials, auxiliary curricula products, school furniture, books / school documents etc.) at the level
of the global, optimal, strategic, innovative demands of class. We may identify three dimensions of class
management, as class management of educational context:
a) the ergonomic dimension – considers the school furniture, its functionality pedagogically necessary /
didactically and from the perspective of the learning hygiene and of the demands of a frontal instruction based on
cooperation in learning conditions in (micro)group and individual;
b) ecological dimension – considers the necessary hygiene conditions of learning, of permanent aeration of
class, of ensuring an optimal temperature and atmospheric pressure for accomplishing the specific didactic activities
(lessons etc.);
c) ideological dimension – considers the visual propaganda accomplished in the school class, reported to
the school tradition as organization, of the territorial educational community/ zonal and local, of cl a class as
socioeducational group with specific didactic and extra-didactic resources etc.
The management of class pedagogic time aims the valorization of the didactic resources engaged at level of
time by:
154 Gabriela Cristea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156

- Formal learning (accomplished by the teacher in class, at the level of didactic activity, projected in
curricula, of teaching-learning-evaluation in the 50 official minutes;
- Nonformal learning (what the pupil does as extradidactic activity / we consider the individual and
group consultations offered by the teacher outside school, but mostly home individual study, in library
etc., dependent actions, complementary with what the teacher proposes and accomplishes in class.
C) Management of psychosocial climate aims the internal and external educational ambiance generated
by: pedagogic, didactic, psychological, social, ecological ergonomic normative relations between:
a) teacher – pupils class, as socio-educational group, globally approached;
b) teacher – certain pupils (problem-pupils, special cases, normal cases etc., globally or / and individually
approached);
c) didactic class collective – class of pupils;
d) didactic collective of class – certain pupils, approached as group or / and individually;
f) teacher-form master – didactic class collective;
g) teacher-form master – certain teachers from the classes’ didactic collective;
h) teacher-form master – local educational community, represented by parents etc.;
i) teachers, class didactic collective – local educational community, represented by parents, etc.
D) Management of educational crisis solving situations aims the initiation and finalization of special
pedagogic actions of the teacher-form master and of other members of the class didactic collective, which can be
adopted hierarchically (ibidem, pp.521-524):
a) special pedagogic actions of prevention (by positive – negative consolidation; of „countering the
undesired, inadequate behaviors”;
b) special pedagogic actions of effective intervention (by: interpellation / of guidance, imperative,
directive; acknowledging / assuming the consequences of those facts; elaboration of an „individual plan of
intervention”.
The pedagogic principles advanced in this special intervention may be established at the level of the
following normative landmarks: a) correction and restructuration of the deficient behavior; b) positive formative
directing, individualized, „which doesn’t affect the evolution of the other pupils”; c) elimination of confrontations
(verbal, behavioral etc.) which cannot lead to positive solving by solutions opened to self-perfection; d) assurance of
the frontal, group and individual psychological comfort.
The special strategies that can be adopted are those based on „negotiation, fraternization, ritual and routine,
occupational therapy, moral sustenance” (ibidem, 523).

2) The management of the didactic / lesson activity constitutes that dimension which follows the global,
optimal, strategic, innovative approach of the numerous variables which intervene in the pedagogic / didactic
projection and action. We will identify the most important aspects which intervene in: A) The management of
instruction projection; B) The management of instruction accomplishing.
A) The management of instruction projection was approached in concrete terms of „lesson management”,
analyzed from historical and actual perspective (Gabriela Cristea 2003a, 2008). The application of managerial
leadership at the instruction level, in the educational process, contributes to the affirmation of an ideal model of:
global, optimal, strategic, innovative approach: a) the project of the didactic activity in its ensemble; b) each
component of the didactic project.
a) The management of the instruction projection at the level of didactic activities (lessons etc.) implies the
global articulation of three strategic sequences:
- the organization of the pedagogic resources of the activity (informational, human, didactic-material,
financial) in a manner which to lead to optimal decisions in accordance with the necessary forms of organization
(the combining of frontal instruction with that on groups and individual) and with the concrete activity type and
variant (mixed lesson etc.);
- forecasting of the didactic activity after the daily chapter and subject theme: general objective of the
chapter reflected at the lesson level; operational objectives derived from the general objective of the lesson; basic
contents (information, abilities, cognitive strategies etc.) necessary to accomplish the general objective and of
 Gabriela Cristea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156 155

objectives; usable didactic methods and proceedings; evaluation methods and techniques integrated in strategies of
initial, continuous and final evaluation (summative, cumulative);
- implementation of forecasting by actions of teaching – learning – evaluation in permanent
interdependence.
b) Management of instruction projection at the level of the four components of the didactic project:
- operationalization of the specific objectives (of the chapter, study module etc., concentrated at the level of
lesson general objective);
- fixation of the basic contents: knowledge, abilities, cognitive strategies, problem solving strategies;
- choosing the didactic methods, of the techniques / useful didactic proceedings in the opened context in
which the lesson takes place, which allows their optimization (by the conversion of proceedings in methods or by
advancing other methods) as expression of the teacher-manager innovative creativity;
- regulation-self-regulation of the didactic activity by the continuous (formative) evaluation strategy,
completed by the strategy of the initial evaluation (see Sorin Cristea, Muşata Bocoş, Proiectarea instruirii, in Dan
Potolea, Ioan, Neacşu, Romiţă B.Iucu, Ion-Ovidiu Pânişoara (coord.), 2008, pp.366-369).
B) The management of instruction accomplishing appears as necessary in the construction of the didactic
scenario, in the global, optimal, strategic and innovative leadership of the three actions subordinated to the
instruction activity, in the educational process, actions which are permanently perfectible by their interdependence:
teaching – learning – evaluation.
Teaching management implies the improvement of the didactic communication that the teacher-manager
accomplishes at the level of the construction of the pedagogic messages reported to the class, to each micro-group
and pupil. At this level we may speak about the necessity of approaching teaching as efficient pedagogical
communication model (Liliana Ezechil, 2002; Ion-Ovidu Pânişoară, 2008).
Learning management implies the valorization all the pupil’s psychological resources, both cognitive
(perception, representation, thinking, memory, imagination, general intelligence, verbal intelligence, mathematical
intelligence etc.) and noncognitive (affectivity, will, motivation, character). We must do this reported to the demands
of the most important psychological theories of learning and by the axiomatic of the curriculum theory which
imposes the assurance of the permanent interdependence between teaching-learning-evaluation, the conceiving of
the educational process at the level of teaching-learning-evaluation (Ioan Cerghit, 2008; Gabriela Cristea, 2003b,
2003a, 2008).
The management of evaluation implies especially the valorization of the continuous, formative evaluation
strategy, which fulfills the leading function of the entire education process at the level of permanent regulation –
self-regulation of the instruction activity. The teacher-manager will regulate-self-regulate his teaching action and
that of the pupils, of learning, reported to the evaluations accomplished at level of inverse connection (feed-back),
using a large range of evaluation methods and techniques, integrated in the structure of class continuous, formative
evaluation strategy, of micro-groups, of each pupil (Ion T.Radu, 2000; Marin Manolescu, 2005).

Conclusion

Class management as methodology of general didactics / general theory of instruction promotes an ideal
model for approaching instruction in the educational process, interdisciplinary sustained (by the specific valorizing
of the technological dimension and practical of General didactics, but also of the Psychology of education and
Sociology of education) and interdisciplinary (by valorizing the interdependence reports between pedagogy and
economy, pedagogy and social psychology). This ideal model must be constructed and perfected at the levels of the
necessary correlation between:
1) Management of class context – which must be approached as opened context, with the valorizing of an
ensemble of variables with objective character (available space and time, pupils’ qualities etc.) and
subjective (teacher’s initiatives, his managerial and didactic style etc.).
2) The management of the specific didactic activity in class – lesson approached globally, systemically
(organization – forecasting – concrete achievement in opened context), permanently valorizing the
156 Gabriela Cristea / Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences 180 (2015) 150 – 156

interdependence relations between teaching-learning-evaluation, as strategic actions integrated in the

structure of efficient pedagogic functioning of instruction.

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